Welcome to Istanbul!
“If one had but a single glance to give the world, one should gaze on Istanbul.” – Alphonse de Lamartine European Capital of Culture for 2010, Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey, largest city proper and the second largest metropolitan area in Europe, and the fourth largest city proper in the world with a population of more than 12 million. Istanbul is also a megacity as well as the cultural and financial center of Turkey. The city covers 27 districts of the Istanbul province. It is located on the Bosphorus Strait and encompasses the natural harbor known as the Golden Horn, in the northwest of the country. Istanbul extends both on the European (Thrace) and on the Asian (Anatolia) sides of the Bosphorus, and is thereby the only metropolis in the world that is situated on two continents. Throughout its long-lived history, Istanbul has served as the capital city of the Roman Empire (330–395), the East Roman (Byzantine) Empire (395–1204 and 1261–1453), the Latin Empire (1204–1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453–1922). The historic areas of Istanbul were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985.
ONLINE SOURCES For more information on Istanbul, please visit one of the online City Guides below: http://english.istanbul.com www.theguideistanbul.com www.istanbulcityguide.com
Istanbul is one of the most important tourism spots of Turkey. There are thousands of hotels and other tourist oriented industries in the city, catering to both vacationers and visiting professionals. In 2006, for example, a total of 23,148,669 tourists visited Turkey, most of whom entered the country through the airports and seaports of Istanbul. Istanbul is also one of the world’s major conference destinations and is an increasingly popular choice for the world’s leading international associations.
Theme of the Session - Bridging the Cultural Divides of Europe As most international sessions of the EYP, the Istanbul 2012 Session will have a special theme. The official session theme is “Bridging the Cultural Divides of Europe”. The theme of Istanbul 2012 session is planned to be implemented by utilising both the geographic and the cultural elements of the city that make it so unique compared to other locations in Europe. By staging the session both on the European side and the Asian side, we will be emphasising physical bridges and by forming partnerships with the four main religious communities (Muslim, Jewish, Greek Orthodox and Armenian Orthodox) prevalent in Istanbul we will be emphasizing the spiritual bridges that this historic city has formed.